Director of Quality in Auburn, New York at Cayuga Milk Ingredients, LLC

Position Title: Director, Quality

Reports To: VP of Quality

FLSA Status: Exempt

Job Grade: 14

Pay Range: $153,000- $218,000 +10% incentive for financial and personal goals

Position Overview:

The Sr. Director of Quality is responsible for ensuring top-tier quality standards within a dynamic dairy manufacturing environment. This position leads the development and execution of a comprehensive quality strategy, driving initiatives to exceed regulatory and customer expectations for food safety, quality, and innovation. The Sr. Director of Quality will oversee all quality assurance, food safety, and regulatory functions, establishing metrics, maintaining compliance, and implementing best practices across for the consumer products plant. This role also supervises the Certified Lab, manages lab safety protocols, and ensures thorough reporting to Cayuga Farms. This is a hands on, in the trenches role that is also expected to be strategic.

Job Responsibilities:

Regulatory and Quality Control

• Ensure compliance with federal, state, and local food safety, environmental, and quality regulations through regular inspections, risk assessments, and program evaluations.
• Build and sustain productive relationships with regulatory bodies (e.g., FDA, NY Agriculture & Markets, USDA, OSHA) to uphold industry standards.
• Lead root cause analyses and implement corrective actions for quality incidents, ensuring preventive measures are in place.
• Oversee the Quality Assurance (QA) program, including comprehensive product analysis (chemical, physical, organoleptic, bacteriological) and product shelf-life assessments.
• Develop and deliver quality training for plant personnel covering key areas like sanitation, allergen control, and proper handling procedures.
• Lead HACCP and Safe Quality Food (SQF) teams, ensuring that processes meet rigorous quality and safety standards.
• Collaborate with R&D to validate the safety and quality of finished products, with a focus on ingredient inspection, sampling, testing, and compliance with packaging and sanitation protocols.
• Work closely with operations teams to proactively resolve quality issues and continuously improve plant processes.
• Manage laboratory and technical staff, ensuring compliance with federal, state, and USPH testing standards.
• Maintain precise product formulations and manufacturing protocols for all dairy products produced.
• Oversee pest control, pathogen monitoring, sanitation audits, and the documentation of quality-related records.
• Lead quality assurance programs for international shipments and aseptic/Extended Shelf Life (ESL) production readiness.

Personnel Management

• Foster a positive, productive work environment, maintaining open communication with employees across all levels.
• Engage with production teams on the floor, ensuring equipment and processes meet quality targets.
• Oversee scheduling and supervision of QA and lab personnel, ensuring optimal staffing and efficient operations.
• Drive a culture of proactive quality management through training programs on dairy testing procedures, COA completion, and milk sampling best practices.
• Generate and share quality performance reports with senior management to support data-driven decision-making.
• Investigate customer complaints, address root causes and improve customer satisfaction.
• Facilitate regular departmental meetings to ensure alignment on quality goals and expectations.

Budgeting and Strategic Planning

• Develop and manage the annual quality budget, setting Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to drive cost efficiencies.
• Identify and implement strategies to reduce quality-related operating expenses without compromising safety or compliance.

Other Responsibilities

• Support quality and food safety programs on off-shifts as needed.
• Perform other duties as assigned by the VP of Quality, aligning with the organization’s growth and quality objectives.
• Additional responsibilities may be included to support evolving business needs.

Education/Experience:

• Experience: Minimum 10 years of experience in quality assurance within food manufacturing of dairy products. Previous experience in Aseptic and ELS processes is highly valued.
• Education: Bachelor’s degree in food technology, Dairy Science, or a related field preferred.
• Skills: Strong expertise in regulatory compliance, food safety, labeling, and quality standards for dairy production.
• Technical Knowledge: Familiarity with Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography (UPLC) and mass spectrometry is a plus.
• Management Skills: Proven leadership and supervisory experience.
• Communication: Exceptional verbal and written communication abilities.
• Technology: Proficiency in Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.

This position offers the opportunity to lead a quality-driven culture, upholding high standards in dairy manufacturing and contributing to the company’s commitment to excellence and innovation.

Environmental Considerations:

· Must be able to work in environments with varying temperatures.

· Potential exposure to ingredients used in food manufacturing, including allergens.

· May encounter chemicals commonly used in food processing and distribution facilities.

Physical Requirements:

· Ability to navigate all areas of the facility, including office spaces, warehouse areas, and the exterior perimeter.

· Must wear required personal protective equipment (PPE) as necessary to safely perform job duties.

· Ability to stand, sit, and carry out tasks throughout a full shift, with appropriate meal breaks.

· Physically capable of standing, bending, stooping, kneeling, reaching, twisting, lifting, pushing, pulling, climbing, balancing, and crouching as needed.

· Able to lift and move items weighing up to 50 pounds independently and heavier objects with reasonable accommodations.

· Visual acuity sufficient to perform job duties accurately.

· Capable of assessing weights, judging distances, and working at various heights.

Compensation:

At Cayuga Milk Ingredients, we value a fair and comprehensive approach to compensation. Our wage range for this role is determined by various factors, including skill sets, experience, training, licensure, certifications, and organizational needs. It is not typical for an employee to start at or near the top of the range for the position. Compensation decisions are made based on individual job circumstances considering skill level, previous experience, and education requirements.

Equal Opportunity Employer:

Cayuga Milk Ingredients is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws. This policy applies to all aspects of employment, including recruitment, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.

Non-Discrimination Policy:

The contractor will not discriminate against employees or applicants for discussing or disclosing their own pay or the pay of others. However, employees with access to compensation information as part of their job duties are prohibited from disclosing this information to unauthorized individuals, except in specific circumstances outlined by applicable laws and regulations (41 CFR 60-1.35(c)).

General Statement:

All Cayuga employees recognize that the success and prosperity of the company is everyone’s responsibility. All employees are expected to treat each other in a positive, respectful, and professional manner, to be at work for their assigned shift and to work safely as a team. Employees must be self-starters who can relate to all levels of the organization.

Disclaimer:

o All requirements are subject to possible modification to reasonably accommodate individuals with disabilities.

o This job description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by the employee occupying this position. Employees will be required to follow any other job-related instructions and to perform any other job-related duties requested by their supervisor.

o The company reserves the right to add to or revise an employee's job duties at any time at its sole discretion.

o This document does not create an employment contract, implied or otherwise, other than an “at will” employment relationship.